Heidenau K73

[Kiwi_Roy]

I chose a pair of the K73s for my Griso my trip to the Arctic solely on looks and price

Does anyone have any experience with these tires on a Carc bike?
Thanks in advance
Roy

[JohninVT]

I think you’re going to be disappointed with the treadlife.  They’re a supermoto tire designed for sub 400lb bikes.  They’re also bias ply. 

A friend mounted a set on his DRZ400SM.  Not exactly a rocket ship at 35hp and about 350 pounds.  He got 2,800 miles out of them.

[Kiwi_Roy]

I think you’re going to be disappointed with the treadlife.  They’re a supermoto tire designed for sub 400lb bikes.  They’re also bias ply. 

A friend mounted a set on his DRZ400SM.  Not exactly a rocket ship at 35hp and about 350 pounds.  He got 2,800 miles out of them.

Thanks for the feedback, I don't expect them to last much more than the trip 3,700 miles but I wanted something better than street tires for the Dempster Highway in the middle of the trip.
Actually they were recommended by my bike shop over the equivalent Pirrelis

My Friend on a Supertenere +150 lb has selected the Heidenau K60s they have a chunkier tread pattern.

[ChuckH]

I've seen a lot of Stelvio type of bikes with the K60's, particularly out in Colorado, etc where they're doing a lot of off-road riding.  They seem to give good performance and quite good life on the heavier dual-sport bikes.

[mtiberio]

Never had them on a Carc bike, but I put a set on my Honda NC700X. They were so horrible, I sold the bike shortly after putting them on (no really). I burned through the OEM tires, and then I tried a set of Pirelli MT60's. Those were heavenly. The Heidenaus were $100 cheaper per pair, and I wanted to try a set. What a glorious mistake. They were bias ply, and I don't know if the suspension was "radial" tuned, or what, but the ride went to total shit. I find it hard to believe that these could be used on a sub 400 pound bike as the side walls were terribly stiff hence the horrible ride. No idea on tread longevity, but frankly after hearing horror stories about the Pirellis, I managed to get over 6000 miles from those. I should have bought another set of Pirellis, I might still have the Honda. On a more important note, the Heidenaus were slippy slidey in the dry and horrible in the rain. All this for a tire that said "super-rain" on the side wall. I'd run far and fast from these tires... The pirellis stuck like glue dry or wet, lasted a good long time and I suggest you try those.

[egschade]

I would 2nd the Pirelli MT-60 RS combo for your trip. I ran the Scorpion Trail II on my Griso with great results but not sure if those would handle slick dirt as well as the MT-60's. Both come in OEM size for the Griso and are radials.

[Kiwi_Roy]

Thanks for all the feedback.
When I said I chose them, the bike is sitting on the Heidenau rubber right now.

I don't have a problem with running bias tires, it's all there was until a few years ago, they have a more rounder profile which should be better on gravel than a flat radial. Also seem to be recommended for a cruiser which is really the sort of riding we will be doing

Chuck H, It's reassuring to hear that some Stelvio owners run the K60

Mtberio, the tires were so bad you sold the bike, why didn't you just change tires?
Thanks for the warning about how slippery they are, I must say I'm surprised looking at the tread pattern, bear in mind I will be on K73 with smaller tread not the K60.

Egschade, I was looking at the Pirellis, perhaps I made a mistake. I took Pirelli road tires off, they will be going back when I return, the smooth road pattern would be no good for gravel.

I will report back at the end on June

[mtiberio]

Thanks for all the feedback.
When I said I chose them, the bike is sitting on the Heidenau rubber right now.

I don't have a problem with running bias tires, it's all there was until a few years ago, they have a more rounder profile which should be better on gravel than a flat radial. Also seem to be recommended for a cruiser which is really the sort of riding we will be doing

Chuck H, It's reassuring to hear that some Stelvio owners run the K60

Mtberio, the tires were so bad you sold the bike, why didn't you just change tires?
Thanks for the warning about how slippery they are, I must say I'm surprised looking at the tread pattern, bear in mind I will be on K73 with smaller tread not the K60.

Egschade, I was looking at the Pirellis, perhaps I made a mistake. I took Pirelli road tires off, they will be going back when I return, the smooth road pattern would be no good for gravel.

I will report back at the end on June

I was talking K73's... Why not just change tires, rather than sell? I had been happy enough with the bike and wasn't considering selling, but the reasoning gets complicated. I almost ripped my right index finger tip off changing the tires on my tire machine, so that left me pissed off about the whole thing, and gave me an irrational emotional response to the tires (but I still maintain the tire were sh*t performance wise for me). And frankly, I wasn't too thrilled about having to install another set of tires on that bike at that point (it took months to heal). The hammering that the K73's gave me through the suspension simply reminded me that the suspension on the Honda was sh*t (but masked by the wonderful Pirellis). The Honda was an "adventure" bike, but inadequate to the task, not really off road capable. I decided to get a 2017 CRF250L, and I got a decent price and trade, so the rest they say is history.

Since you have the Heidenau K73's installed, I'd say mazel tov (seriously). Don't let my story bias your experience. Totally different bike, and they may very well work out wonderfully for you. Enjoy.

[JohninVT]

Just a clarification; the K60's aren't remotely related to the K73's in terms of longevity.  K60's last forever and are incredibly popular in the ADV community for their traction and tire life. 

I wouldn't bother swapping out the K73's if your trip is under 3,000 miles and it's mostly gravel.  They should make it if you don't hammer on them and keep them at the higher end of the pressure range. 

[Kiwi_Roy]

Just a clarification; the K60's aren't remotely related to the K73's in terms of longevity.  K60's last forever and are incredibly popular in the ADV community for their traction and tire life. 

I wouldn't bother swapping out the K73's if your trip is under 3,000 miles and it's mostly gravel.  They should make it if you don't hammer on them and keep them at the higher end of the pressure range.

It will be interesting to compare the wear on the 500 lb Griso with K73 to the 650 lb Supertenere K60 over the same trip, we have a similar riding style.
 

[Kiwi_Roy]

Reporting back: at 8,000 km the rear k73 has a definite flat spot in the middle, the front looks quite good still but if you look closely it’s cupped quite bad , I assume due to the camber of the road.
I think you would be pushing it to get 10k out of the K73
Meanwhile my buddy with the S10, his K70s had lots of rubber left but he couldn’t wait to get street rubber back on, the rear knobby tire made an annoying whine.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk